Published: Wednesday, September 11, 2013 at 11:29 a.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, September 11, 2013 at 12:56 p.m.

Sheriff Chris Blair has admonished one of his senior commanders for a derogatory comment aimed at the County Commission, a Sheriff's Office spokesman said.

Blair, according to Capt. Jimmy Pogue, "counseled" Maj. Don Maines for recently telling a citizens' group that the board members were "arrogant sons of (expletive)."

Maines made the remark during a meeting of the Sheriff's Office's Citizens Academy and Partnership program, a free 12-week course designed to educate the public about the agency's operations.

One of the meetings attendees alerted the board about the comment in an email on Sept. 5, saying he was "shocked" by Maines' behavior during the gathering at On Top of the World.

Pogue said in an email to the Star-Banner that Maines was updating the group as to how the commission had "arrogantly" denied Blair's request for budget transfers.

The board did so on Sept. 3, unanimously declining Blair's request to shift about $1.2 million in his budget to buy vehicles and other items.

"Speaking out of frustration, the passionate-speaking Maj. Maines had a lapse of judgment and uttered out his own personal opinions on the topic," Pogue said.

"Sheriff Blair has counseled Maj. Maines concerning the incident and Maj. Maines will address the issue with the Sheriff's Academy attendees during their next meeting."

Pogue declined to relate what Blair specifically told Maines about the incident or whether any additional discipline was handed down.

Pogue also declined to comment on Blair's response to Maines' remarks, or offer a statement from the sheriff about it.

Pogue also did not address whether Maines would apologize to the commissioners, all of whom received a copy of the email from the person who attended the meeting.

"As written in our previous response in reference to this issue, the Sheriff has counseled Maj. Maines concerning the statements made and the appropriate disciplinary action was taken," Pogue added in a subsequent statement.

"We pride ourselves as being a professional organization and taking swift action to ensure this status."

Commission Chairman Kathy Bryant said the comments were in "poor taste."

"For me personally, I think it was unprofessional, especially coming from senior staff. I know if one of our senior staff had made such a comment, it (the response) would have been quick and would have been a little more than counseling. But the sheriff has to handle his employees," Bryant said.

"I would've expected that he would have counseled Maj. Maines to apologize."

Bryant added, "We obviously disagree (about the budget) but I think we have a responsibility to handle our differences in an appropriate manner. We have tried to handle the sheriff in a professional manner and treated him with respect. That would be my hope for his staff as well."

The County Commission and Blair have been bickering over the budget since early June, when Blair submitted a 2014 spending plan that included a $17 million increase over the agency's current funding level.

Commissioners balked because the proposal meant jacking up property tax rates countywide, and because Blair, alone among the other county-level elected officials, had opted to not keep spending flat for next year, as the commission requested.

Blair challenged the board to find the cuts, and a staff committee led by Commissioner Stan McClain and Clerk of the Circuit Court David Ellspermann has been reviewing the Sheriff's Office's proposed budget to do that.

The findings are expected to be announced soon.

As for the recent budget transfers that apparently triggered Maines' comments, commission Chairwoman Kathy Bryant said recently that she will urge the board to reconsider the denial of about $498,000 of the funding after learning that state law mandates county commissions to approve a sheriff's request to redirect money set aside for contingencies, provided the sheriff asks for that in writing.

Maines' purported frustration over the budget has aired in other public venues.

Last week, Maines told local talk radio host Bob Rose that he and the sheriff would take a pay cut in order to save money — if the county commissioners would do likewise.

Maines' point was that the starting pay for Marion County deputies ranked near the bottom among Florida's 67 counties, and he argued that the County Commission should reduce its pay to reflect a similar ranking.

<p>Sheriff Chris Blair has admonished one of his senior commanders for a derogatory comment aimed at the County Commission, a Sheriff's Office spokesman said.</p><p>Blair, according to Capt. Jimmy Pogue, "counseled" Maj. Don Maines for recently telling a citizens' group that the board members were "arrogant sons of (expletive)."</p><p>Maines made the remark during a meeting of the Sheriff's Office's Citizens Academy and Partnership program, a free 12-week course designed to educate the public about the agency's operations.</p><p>One of the meetings attendees alerted the board about the comment in an email on Sept. 5, saying he was "shocked" by Maines' behavior during the gathering at On Top of the World.</p><p>Pogue said in an email to the Star-Banner that Maines was updating the group as to how the commission had "arrogantly" denied Blair's request for budget transfers.</p><p>The board did so on Sept. 3, unanimously declining Blair's request to shift about $1.2 million in his budget to buy vehicles and other items.</p><p>"Speaking out of frustration, the passionate-speaking Maj. Maines had a lapse of judgment and uttered out his own personal opinions on the topic," Pogue said.</p><p>"Sheriff Blair has counseled Maj. Maines concerning the incident and Maj. Maines will address the issue with the Sheriff's Academy attendees during their next meeting."</p><p>Pogue declined to relate what Blair specifically told Maines about the incident or whether any additional discipline was handed down.</p><p>Pogue also declined to comment on Blair's response to Maines' remarks, or offer a statement from the sheriff about it.</p><p>Pogue also did not address whether Maines would apologize to the commissioners, all of whom received a copy of the email from the person who attended the meeting.</p><p>"As written in our previous response in reference to this issue, the Sheriff has counseled Maj. Maines concerning the statements made and the appropriate disciplinary action was taken," Pogue added in a subsequent statement.</p><p>"We pride ourselves as being a professional organization and taking swift action to ensure this status."</p><p>Commission Chairman Kathy Bryant said the comments were in "poor taste."</p><p>"For me personally, I think it was unprofessional, especially coming from senior staff. I know if one of our senior staff had made such a comment, it (the response) would have been quick and would have been a little more than counseling. But the sheriff has to handle his employees," Bryant said.</p><p>"I would've expected that he would have counseled Maj. Maines to apologize."</p><p>Bryant added, "We obviously disagree (about the budget) but I think we have a responsibility to handle our differences in an appropriate manner. We have tried to handle the sheriff in a professional manner and treated him with respect. That would be my hope for his staff as well."</p><p>The County Commission and Blair have been bickering over the budget since early June, when Blair submitted a 2014 spending plan that included a $17 million increase over the agency's current funding level.</p><p>Commissioners balked because the proposal meant jacking up property tax rates countywide, and because Blair, alone among the other county-level elected officials, had opted to not keep spending flat for next year, as the commission requested.</p><p>Blair challenged the board to find the cuts, and a staff committee led by Commissioner Stan McClain and Clerk of the Circuit Court David Ellspermann has been reviewing the Sheriff's Office's proposed budget to do that.</p><p>The findings are expected to be announced soon.</p><p>As for the recent budget transfers that apparently triggered Maines' comments, commission Chairwoman Kathy Bryant said recently that she will urge the board to reconsider the denial of about $498,000 of the funding after learning that state law mandates county commissions to approve a sheriff's request to redirect money set aside for contingencies, provided the sheriff asks for that in writing.</p><p>Maines' purported frustration over the budget has aired in other public venues.</p><p>Last week, Maines told local talk radio host Bob Rose that he and the sheriff would take a pay cut in order to save money — if the county commissioners would do likewise.</p><p>Maines' point was that the starting pay for Marion County deputies ranked near the bottom among Florida's 67 counties, and he argued that the County Commission should reduce its pay to reflect a similar ranking.</p><p><i>Contact Bill Thompson at 867-4117 or bill.thompson@ocala.com.</i></p>